The Vent and Rant Thread

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

However, my parents did teach me that it is polite to say something like "Alsjeblieft" / "Smakelijk" ("Here you go" / "Enjoy your ...") when you hand something to someone, and to say "Thanks" whenever something is handed to you.

I agree. That just nice. None of those things were said, however. I would have been ecstatic if they had said "enjoy your Coke," or "here you go." But they didn't. They literally said, "here's your drink." Which convey's neither information nor politeness. It was said with all the warmth of an 80s voice synthesizer.

Plus ... it's my vent/rant. It needn't make sense to you.

[CRussel]

Plus ... it's my vent/rant. It needn't make sense to you

Amen to that. Though it does make perfect sense to me, since I am not a fan of that sort of server behaviour. I expect calm politeness and courtesy, with neither obsequiousness or rudeness. Astonishing how hard that can be to find sometimes in North America. As opposed to, say, France, where I found the wait-staff highly professional. Attentive without being in-your-face, and absent when they should be.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Amen to that. Though it does make perfect sense to me, since I am not a fan of that sort of server behaviour. I expect calm politeness and courtesy, with neither obsequiousness or rudeness. Astonishing how hard that can be to find sometimes in North America. As opposed to, say, France, where I found the wait-staff highly professional. Attentive without being in-your-face, and absent when they should be.

My pet peeves with servers:

• Addressing my dining companion(s) and me as, "You guys." I'm not a guy, for one; for another, it's far too informal. There's nothing at all wrong with "you."
• Commenting on how I've finished my food. Shut up. I'm supposed to eat it. If I didn't eat it, you should ask if something's wrong. Clearly, nothing was and my appetite is none of your business.
• Starting to take away plates when others at the table are still eating.

There are more, but that's for starters.

[orlok]

Originally Posted by issybird

MStarting to take away plates when others at the table are still eating.

That's top of my list. I've actually had to tell someone to wait until we are all finished.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

On the other hand, I'd be rude to just put the drink down and not saying anything. At least, I've had this happen some time ago. Ordered a cup of coffee somewhere, and the waitress just plopped it onto the table in passing, without saying anything. That just seems rude and disinterested.

Rude is slamming the water glasses on the table and throwing the menus at the customers.
Then at the end of the meal screaming loudly "Don't ever come back in here."

*Note: The customers were not being rude or loud or obnoxious. It was the waitress didn't care for one of the customers personally. Yes, she told the manager that when the manager came flying over.
All the manager saw was a waitress yelling at two very good customers.

The waitress was gone before we got out of the restaurant. We were both welcome anytime.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by issybird

My pet peeves with servers:

• Addressing my dining companion(s) and me as, "You guys." I'm not a guy, for one; for another, it's far too informal. There's nothing at all wrong with "you."
• Commenting on how I've finished my food. Shut up. I'm supposed to eat it. If I didn't eat it, you should ask if something's wrong. Clearly, nothing was and my appetite is none of your business.
• Starting to take away plates when others at the table are still eating.

There are more, but that's for starters.

The only time, the last one is appropriate is if it is an all you can eat buffet and you have to use a clean plate every trip.

[DiapDealer]

And while we're on the subject of drive-throughs:

"What can I get you?"
"I'll have a number three, medium, with a Coke."
"Medium or large?"
"Medium."
"And what to drink?"

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by issybird

My pet peeves with servers:

• Addressing my dining companion(s) and me as, "You guys." I'm not a guy, for one; for another, it's far too informal. There's nothing at all wrong with "you."
• Commenting on how I've finished my food. Shut up. I'm supposed to eat it. If I didn't eat it, you should ask if something's wrong. Clearly, nothing was and my appetite is none of your business.
• Starting to take away plates when others at the table are still eating.

There are more, but that's for starters.

Those will do. And I couldn't agree more!

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

And while we're on the subject of drive-throughs:

"What can I get you?"
"I'll have a number three, medium, with a Coke."
"Medium or large?"
"Medium."
"And what to drink?"

Around here Coke is used as a generic. It can mean either Coke or Pepsi depending on who the restaurant uses.
*There was a restaurant that didn't have either for a few hours, the day they switched from one to the other.

Note: Dr Pepper is usually available with either vendor.

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Around here Coke is used as a generic. It can mean either Coke or Pepsi depending on who the restaurant uses.
*There was a restaurant that didn't have either for a few hours, the day they switched from one to the other.

Not where I'm from. Coke is Coke and Pepsi is Pepsi--and both are listed separately on the menu. And even if I were in one of those places, how would saying "Coke" again clarify anything? No. The disconnect here is that people aren't really listening. Even though I gave them everything they needed to know with my initial order, they simply weren't paying attention.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

And while we're on the subject of drive-throughs:

"What can I get you?"
"I'll have a number three, medium, with a Coke."
"Medium or large?"
"Medium."
"And what to drink?"

The reason for this is easily explained. I learned it while working as a support agent for Canon.

One day I got a performance review, and I got panned for 'not using available sources.' The team leader had been listening in on a call and watching the screen using a remove viewer. He noticed I didn't use any documentation or scripts.

When I told him I didn't need any documentation because I did semi-professional photography and personally owned about half the equipment that sat in the test lab, his response was that he didn't care.

The rules stated that documentation should be consulted, and certain questions should be asked (even if it was glaringly obviousl that asking said questions would be of no ***** use), so I got a big fat minus with regard to following performance guidelines and a warning to boot.

And that, dear listner, is how you slow down a help desk by at least 50%, because the computers and networks are slow, people need to 'officially' find information they already know (if you get a call about the same device three times in a row, you'll have to look up the information three times), and ask useless questions because the script says so.

It'll be the same with this guy, undoubtedly. He's following a script that states he MUST ask for the food choice, MUST ask for the size, and MUST ask what you want to drink, even if you told him everything in your first response. If he doesn't and his manager listens in, he'll get panned for not following the script.

[DiapDealer]

The explanation doesn't mollify me one bit. Asking me--consistently--for information I already gave you is unacceptable to this customer. That they may be required to ignore me doesn't change the fact that it annoys me profusely. Hence the rant.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

The reason for this is easily explained. I learned it while working as a support agent for Canon.

One day I got a performance review, and I got panned for 'not using available sources.' The team leader had been listening in on a call and watching the screen using a remove viewer. He noticed I didn't use any documentation or scripts.

<snippage>
It'll be the same with this guy, undoubtedly. He's following a script that states he MUST ask for the food choice, MUST ask for the size, and MUST ask what you want to drink, even if you told him everything in your first response. If he doesn't and his manager listens in, he'll get panned for not following the script.

Kats is right; I've seen this innumerable times, over the years. I saw it when I was building hotels, during the pre-opening, with new agents being trained, and I saw it when I was installing networked computer systems, ditto. Agents or servicepeople are given a script, and they dare not deviate from it. It's a way for an entity to proceduralize customer service, in an attempt to provide good customer service, but as Kats mentions, it stifles and eventually eliminates the brightest amongst them, because they can't take it.

Hitch

[Katsunami]

To make this bearable, I've quit giving support employees more information than they asked for, because:

1. They don't even listen to it...
2. Even if they listen to it and understand it, they'll _still_ ask the follow-up questions

So I just call the help desk and tell them:

"My internet doesn't work. I have tried two different computers."

Then I let them run through their questions, and in the end, the conclusion is (most of the time) that there's a problem on their end.

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by Hemmi

I still hate my job.

I want to go work somewhere that I can actually walk out the door at my scheduled time at least two or three times a week. That is not too much to ask. Oh, and a job where I can actually take some of the vacation time I get and not come back to a huge mess it takes me weeks to catch up on.

At a previous employer, I was a salaried employee, so instead of getting overtime for work beyond 40 hours a week, I received comp time that could be taken as vacation days.

The problem was, I was the only one in the part of my company I worked in who could do what I did, and any time I thought about time off, something would arise that required my attention.

It was eased a bit by the fact that I didn't want a normal vacation. I wanted to be able to take long weekends, and tell my coworkers on Wednesday that I'd be out Thursday through Monday and return Tuesday. I could tell my employer a year in advance just which weekends they would be, so they were comfortable with the notion.

But I earned enough comp time through long hours (including an all-nighter or two) that I could tell my boss "Bye, Larry. See you in a month!" if I really wanted to use it up. (In fairness, he could have said "Bye, everyone. See you in 6 months! )

But it was "Use it or lose it" - it did not carry over across years. What I would have liked is "Just cut me an extra paycheck to cover the comped time I must lose going into next year", but that wasn't something they'd do.
______
Dennis